Carnival Blues
by TheFoolOnMelancholyHill
Summary: One-shot. Herald's the third wheel on Jericho and Kole's date at the carnival, not to mention it's Valentines Day. As Herald tries his best to keep his composure intact, can a certain blonde mute teach him a lesson or two on the true meaning of Valentine's Day? Some JeriKole and JerichoXHerald friendship.


**Disclaimer: I don't own Teen Titans, they belong to Cartoon Network, DC Comics, and Warner Bros. I also don't own Paul McCartney's masterpiece entitled, "Silly Love Songs."**

* * *

_"You'd think that people would have had enough of silly love songs. But I look around me and I see it isn't so. Some people wanna fill the world with silly love songs. And what's wrong with that? I'd like to know. 'Cause here I go again…"_

The classic tune rang through Herald's head as he walked through the crowded carnival. There were many rides, games, and prizes to be won. He blended in nicely with the crowd, deciding to go casual today by wearing a dark blue t-shirt, jeans, sunglasses, and a black beanie. As he continued on, he noticed that a person was dressed up as a giant heart with a sewn in smile and a gleeful expression. _Kole's gonna go nuts over that,_ Herald thought to himself. As if on cue, he heard a squeal come from behind him. He turned to find Kole, whose arms were filled with various stuffed animals that Jericho had won her. One of Jericho's hands was gently clasped in Kole's free one, while the other was holding a cone of blue cotton candy.

"Oh Jericho, we've gotta take a picture with him!" Kole exclaimed as she eagerly pointed toward the heart shaped mascot. Jericho seemed amused at Kole's behavior, but didn't complain as he was dragged towards the heart without even getting a chance to reply. Herald lightly folded his arms across his chest, wanting this day to be over as soon as possible. He couldn't believe that Jericho had actually gotten him to go to this stupid carnival with him and Kole. He knew he would end up being the third wheel, with them dating and all, but then Jericho looked at him with those big, green, puppy dog eyes and well - he just couldn't say no to his best friend like that.

Oh, but how he wish he had.

Especially on the most lousy day of the year; Valentine's Day to be precise.

Maybe Herald's problem wasn't the holiday itself. Maybe his problem was the people who _participated_ in the holiday. It just didn't make sense to him; if you really loved someone, then shouldn't everyday be like Valentine's Day? Herald wasn't a love expert, so to say, but he knew the basics when it came to romance. He had gone on a few dates and from the ones that he could remember, he knew that he had treated those girls with utmost importance and respect. Heck, he had even saved up enough money once to rent out the entire VIP room of a restaurant and hire a harp player, just to impress a girl.

A flash from a camera shook Herald out of his thoughts as he saw that a man had taken a picture of Jericho, Kole, and that weird Valentine's Day Heart. Even after the picture, Jericho continued to smile as Kole gently hugged the heart, then gathered her belongings and took Jericho's hand.

"Hey, you lovebirds wanna ride on one of those roller coasters?" Herald asked the duo with his smooth yet raspy voice. If he was going to spend the rest of his day here, he at least wanted to have _some_ amount of fun.

Kole looked a little taken aback. "Oh, I'm sorry Herald, me and Jericho were planning on going in 'The Tunnel Of Love' next. It'll only take a minute though. Can we get on it after?"

_Yeah right_, Herald mused to himself. All of the couples were lining up there, with it being Valentine's Day and all. He was sure that the wait would be longer than ever before. Herald just huffed, which Kole took as a 'yes' sign because she quickly began dragging Jericho away. However, Jericho stayed firmly planted to the spot as he peered at Herald with a look of deep concern. Herald knew that Jericho was trying to read his thoughts. His best friend always knew when something was up.

"Jericho, is everything okay?" Kole asked as she stopped pulling at his arm. Jericho lightly shook his head and signed a couple of words to her, asking if he could talk to Herald alone for a minute. "That's okay, I'll go find the ride so I can start waiting in line. Just come find me when you're done." With that, she anxiously made her way through the crowd.

Jericho wore an expression that said _we need to talk_ as he clasped Herald's wrist and lead him towards a less crowded area. He let go of Herald's arm and lightly tapped his foot, waiting for an explanation.

"What?" Herald asked his younger friend, slightly exasperated. Jericho sighed and ran a hand through his golden, curly locks.

_You look like something's troubling you. Care to explain?_ Jericho signed to Herald.

Herald bit his lip. On one hand, he really wanted to leave this place, but on the other, he really didn't want to ruin Jericho's day with Kole. Jericho wanted him to be here, so obviously he wouldn't want Herald to leave. But he was having so much fun with Kole, surely he wouldn't mind if Herald left? He had stuck around long enough.

"Listen Jer," Herald began to explain, "You know I love the idea of you and Kole being together, I support your relationship, really, I do, but why'd you want me to come in the first place if all you were gonna do is spend your time with her while I watched from the sidelines?"

Now it was Jericho's turn to bite his lip. After a short pause, he slowly signed, _I know she's kind of going crazy today and is asking for some extra attention, but it's Valentines Day. I wanted to bring you along because your my best friend, and, well…I knew that if I didn't drag you along, you'd be spending it by yourself._ Herald was slightly taken aback by his response.

"So I don't have a girlfriend. What's wrong with being alone on Valentine's Day?" Herald asked defensively.

_There's nothing wrong with that,_ Jericho quickly explained, _But just because it's Valentine's Day doesn't mean that you have to be alone. The real reason why I brought you here, is because you're my friend, simple as that. I wanted to spend the day with my girlfriend and my best friend. The way I see it, Valentine's Day isn't just about spending time with your significant other. It's about what's important in your life, more importantly _who's_ important in your life._ Jericho paused, as he looked down at his feet and shyly signed, _And Herald, I don't know what I'd do without you._

Herald was at a loss for words. All this time, this holiday had always seemed like one big waste of time. But with Jericho's insight on it, Herald now had a better understanding of what Valentine's Day truly meant.

_Love._

And not just love between boyfriend and girlfriend; love between family, friends, the Titans, and everyone else that was important in Herald's life.

Without thinking, he took a step forward and enveloped Jericho in a warm hug. Jericho's eyes widened, but he soon returned the favor and patted his back. Herald knew it was kind of weird to be hugging his friend, but for once he didn't want to conceal his emotions. Jericho literally was the best person he had ever crossed paths with, and he hoped they'd be best friends for a long time.

Herald pulled away with a smile. "C'mon lover boy, you should get back to Kole."

_Who you calling 'lover boy?' You're the one that hugged me,_ Jericho signed with a small grin. _Besides, I've got a better idea._

* * *

It had taken some convincing, but Jericho had finally persuaded Kole to accompany him and Herald to a roller coaster called "The Screaming Cannon." The ride itself was filled with a bunch of loops, and had a frightening drop towards the end of it. Jericho had made Herald sit in the middle, but as soon as Kole's screams filled the air, he knew that he was in for a _long_ ride.

As they walked down the pavilion of games, Herald lightly ruffled Jericho's hair. No matter what, his best friend would always be there for him. The same went for Herald. They'd be there for each other through thick and thin, because that's what friends did for each other.

Jericho couldn't speak, but that didn't mean Herald couldn't listen.

* * *

**Well wasn't that sweet? I ship Herald and Jericho's friendship so hard! I came up with this little beauty partially because of my own troubles on Valentine's Day. Seeing all of these girls get chocolates, balloons, and giant stuffed animals at school kind of got me in a sour mood. Luckily it inspired this cute little one-shot!**

**And just to let you know, I've got some new stories up my sleeve, but they're going to take forever to post. My brother's home from college, so I've gotta run, see you folks!**

**~TheBeatles141**

**_"__And in the end, the love you take, is equal to the love... you make."_ "End" by The Beatles**

**P.S.- How did your Valentine's Day go? Let me know in a review!**


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